Kiss Your Dreams Hello
by flynfreako
Summary: Should he have done it...? After all, she had left even though he had. AxT
1. Prologue

Hopefully this is good... it's been awhile since I've written an actual story, as opposed to a webcomic script. My main concern is how in-character the characters are. I feel that's one of the most important things in fan-fiction... Kinda stupid of me to write this when I haven't seen the actual movie in awhile... but eh... T.T;

Anyway, the title of the story can be credited to the title of a song by Gasoline Heart. I just thought it fit and I couldn't resist using it.

* * *

_"Long has paled that sunny sky:_

_Echoes fade and memories die:_

_Autumn frosts have slain July._

_Still she haunts me, phantomwise_

_Alice moving under skies_

_Never seen by waking eyes."_

~Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass

"Fairfarren", he said, voice dripping with sadness. He quickly kissed her lips before she faded away.

Alice scurried out of the rabbit hole without looking back. Her mind felt foggy, but she felt driven, purposeful, and... mad.

She felt as though she had just awoken from a dream, yet, she couldn't remember falling asleep! Had she tripped and been knocked out?

"_Maybe… but… ", _she felt her head, _"…there aren't any bumps there…."_

Well anyway, she knew she must hurry and finish what she had set out to do before her muchness ran out!

"_Muchness…?"_

All she could really think of was refusing that ridiculous Hamish. How could she possibly have even considered marrying him! The thought was scarier than facing everyone's indignation for her not doing so.

She's not quite sure why she did the things she did after that…

Maybe it was just the years of not saying whatever she wanted. Part of it was to put the others in their place for trying to control her, but oh! Her mouth did have a mind of its own now!

She talked back to her sister, threatened Lowell, and she even stood up for the poor rabbits. It was all well and good… but then she did something she's regretted ever since that day.

Alice shattered Aunt Imogene's dream!

_"There's no prince, Aunt Imogene... you need to see someone about these delusions!"_

Had it really been necessary? No. The woman was old… she didn't really have enough energy to find any new purpose in her life. Yet, she had told the poor woman that her prince was never coming! _**She**__,_ the one to think up six impossible things before breakfast! Why had she done it? Imogene had died a few weeks after that… maybe because her spirit had been broken.

Alice couldn't be sure, but a part of her told herself that she did it out of fear.

A part of her was afraid she'd end up like her aunt; for upon awakening from her "dream", she couldn't shake the feeling of heartache. She couldn't stop thinking of two green eyes and the smell of tea; the feeling of a sad whisper in her ear that made her feel like crying.

It had been a _dream_! She didn't even _want to __**think **_of becoming pathetic and delusional like Imogene… and so she had lashed out at her without thinking… lashed out not only from that small fear, but mostly from the thought that she would never see those green eyes again!

"_Oh if only dreams and delusions could be real!"_

Pushing that thought to the back of her mind, she threw herself into planning a trip to China. The dreams and feelings faded like dreams and the feelings that come with them do. Before she set sail, however, a strange blue butterfly flittered over her head. She smiled at its beauty - a foreign, yet familiar, name from her lips, "Hello Absolem" - but her smile quickly faded as she thought she heard a condescending voice say, "The stupid girl thinks it was just a dream again!" She quickly turned around, but the sailors were all on the other side of the ship.

"_Hearing voices… maybe I really am mad." _She sighed and watched the shore and butterfly disappear from view.

* * *

Preview for the next chapter:

Alice dreams and Tarrant ponders feelings.


	2. Chapter 1

Hey~

This chapter is much longer than the Prologue! Woot! I just hope it isn't boring 8D; haha My husband said it was good, so I guess I'll just trust him!

Thank you for the reviews! Shout out to **NightRose131** and **11konstantine11** ! Thank you so much! I was beginning to worry that nobody would read it o_o;;

So yeah, I won't beg for reviews, but I do answer all of them... and i do love them! :D Don't be afraid to comment~

_Summary: Before leaving Underland, Tarrant kisses Alice. She forgets Underland as she leaves the rabbit hole, but has a lingering feeling of what had happened. This causes her to ridicule Aunt Imogene. She then throws her attention to the China business... before she sets sail, she sees a strange blue butterfly. In shock, she sails away... the Underland experience becomes even more of a "dream" to her._

* * *

_"In a Wonderland they lie,_

_Dreaming as the days go by,_

_Dreaming as the summers die:_

_Ever drifting down the stream -_

_Lingering in the golden dream -_

_Life, what is it but a dream?"_

~ Lewis Carroll

Alice awoke, rolling over in bed.

She had just had that wonderful dream again and was reluctant to let go of the feeling that possessed her as a result.

Like every morning when she'd wake with a dream like this, she closed her eyes and tried to accurately replay the dream over and over again until she was sure she wouldn't forget it when she became fully awake.

There was a man… he had orange hair and wonderful deep green eyes… she couldn't remember much else but… an innocent smile.

_She had loved him._ She touched her lips. _She had kissed him._

Alice lay there, feeling the ocean rock the ship, and thought. She had never been kissed before. How was it possible that it had felt so real? Was her imagination really that powerful? Hmmm… would it really be so surprising to find that it was?

She chuckled. The thought of kissing someone had never even really crossed her mind before that dreadful engagement party almost half a year ago… and she didn't know whether she liked it or not. That little surprise hadn't been the best one in her life, and while she supposed engagements were supposed to be romantic, that attempted one had quite certainly not been. So why, since then, has she been having romantic-ish thoughts? And about some mysterious dream man, no less!

Well… even if it had just been a dream, the feeling of being in love was wonderful. Even if it had just been her imagination, the feeling of being kissed was exciting.

But when she woke up… when she woke up… her smile faltered.

_Oh why couldn't those green eyes be real?_

It was hard not to snicker at herself… it was so like her. No man in London nor China could match up to this dream man. Every city she visited, she had unconsciously been searching for someone like him. Nobody had even come close; male or female. Of course she would yet again prefer her imagination over reality.

She closed her eyes and tried desperately to have another dream about him. No big deal. It wasn't like she hadn't already realized that she would become an old maid. Maybe this was karma for what she had done to her late aunt… but at least she'd go out and live her life before sitting around and waiting for an imaginary man to come get her!

Rolling over under the covers, she sighed. She would be arriving home today… this might be the last moment to herself and her daydreams for awhile!

* * *

_"Must he then only live to weep,_

_Who'd prove his friendship true and deep_

_By day a lonely shadow creep,_

_At night-time languish,_

_Oft raising in his broken sleep_

_The moan of anguish?"_

~Lewis Carroll

"…Hatter? Hatter!"

Tarrant shook his head. "Sorry?"

"You were doing _it _again", replied Mally. Tarrant frowned.

_It._

Since Alice had gone he would frequently space out. He didn't really mind - in fact, he enjoyed it – but it seemed to irritate Mally… especially since he would often just lie on the tea table while doing so. _On_ the tea table!

_Oh bother…._

At his refusal to answer, Mally abruptly threw another cup of tea at his head while Thackery excitedly threwanother teacup at said head_. _

Tarrant rolled out of the way in time for Thackery's assault, but didn't miss Mally's. He gurgled as he kept rolling until he was on his back on the ground, and then took out a handkerchief for his face. After placing the handkerchief over his face, (to protect against any more Lukewarm Tea Attacks), he continued to ponder the same thing he had been pondering for the last few months.

_Why had he kissed her?_

She had probably forgotten him like before… did he regret it? He couldn't decide. Either way, he'd probably still be obsessing over her now whether he had or hadn't.

_But maybe that's why she hadn't come back yet?_

His eyes flashed yellow under the handkerchief before hiding under his eyelids yet again.

Over and over his mind kept going back to that moment. He had been wanting to kiss her for the longest time, but she had never been the right size! Not only that, but, he was older than her… and they were friends! _Friends!_ What if he scared her? Maybe she would avoid him if he did it?

However, when he saw her drink that Jabberwock blood he knew - it was probably the last time he'd ever see her - and then he had kissed her impulsively… secretly hoping it would keep her from forgetting him… somehow.

His heart ached at what could've been.

_But then… had she even liked it?_

It seemed like she had, but…. Maybe that look in her eyes had been more regret that she didn't have time to sort through her confusion and surprise… not just regret for leaving!

Maybe that's why he had really waited to kiss her until she had actually taken the blood. There was no real time for her to reject him this way. But maybe she had already rejected him in the first place by drinking the blood after he had asked her to stay… but no, she would've pushed him away if that had been the case, right…? She probably hadn't known he felt that way… she probably hadn't even considered even feeling that way about him befo-

"Hatter!"

-kiss. "Sorry."

"You're so hopeless!" Mally exclaimed in frustration. "It's like yer not even here anymore... well , except when you're contaminatin' the tea table by usin' it as a bed!"

"I don't even think up anything new…" he mumbled to himself, ignoring the accusation. It always seemed to be the same thoughts circling around… and if it wasn't that, he would just imagine how it would feel if she actually came back... where she might appear first… where she might see him when she does… _if_ she does.

"_She forgot…"_

His heart ached… he felt sick.

Because if she hadn't forgotten, he had a nagging feeling that not coming back to Underland was her way of rejecting him.

Of course nobody would care about him. He was mad… he was different from everyone else. He was alone - the last of his kind – and crazy. _Crazy, mad, and an outsider. _The only one who bothered to come save him from that castle was Alice. Guess she just did it to pay him back for saving her from the cards that had come for her before. Guess she didn't do it because she actually _cared _about him! He should've known! Of course it was his destiny to _be alone for the __**rest of his life!**_

Mally sighed in frustration as she saw Tarrant's eyes rapidly turn a darker shade of yellow as he sat up. Thackery hid as Tarrant jumped up and smashed an innocent teapot before beginning a mounting rant in Outlandish.

_Curse him and that slurvish impulse to kiss her! Now she would never return! It was all his fault! __**His fault**__! Nobody to blame but himself! Slurvish! __**Slurvish! SLUVISH!**_

He sank down to his knees with a sob; a hand over his mouth.

His friends could only look at each other defeatedly. Mally bristled… she knew what the Hatter was thinking, but _Alice_ was the slurvish one!

This happened so often, and yet… they never knew what to do about it. All they could do was hope that Alice would return soon.

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Preview: Alice is obsessed with the butterfly she remembers seeing. There's also a chance to freak her mom out~ :D


	3. Chapter 2

Hey! Thanks to **11konstantine11**, **NightRose131**, **CeliaEquus**, and **QueenTakhsis**, who reviewed! I'm very grateful!

Also, I'm not sure if it sends an update notice when I edit chapters…. Sorry if it did and caused any confusion o_o;; I just added some intro poems to the chapter. Ah, Lewis Carroll was so angsty when you think about it… not that I really blame him though lol

For the future, I will probably be editing past chapters just to get accents right. (I have to do a little practice first, but I don't want to keep updates from you in the meantime XD; )

**Summary: **_Alice has dreams about kissing Tarrant without realizing that he actually had before she left. Why? Because she had forgotten Underland upon climbing out of the rabbit hole. Tarrant, on the other hand, obsesses over why he kissed her and wonders if she's not coming back because of it._

_

* * *

_

"_He sat beside the busy street_

_There, where he last had seen her face;_

_And thronging memories, bitter-sweet_

_Seemed yet to haunt the ancient place :_

_Her footfall ever floated near:_

_Her voice was ever in his ear."_

Lewis Carroll (The Dream of Fame)

Alice had known they wouldn't leave her alone.

Her mother and sister had followed her around everywhere the minute she stepped off the ship! They couldn't stop asking her questions of her travels. How uncivilized had the foreigners been? Nobody had behaved unseemly towards her, had they? Did she have any souvenirs for them? She could practically feel the unasked questions floating between them… one especially tugged at her heart with a strange sense of familiarity.

_Are you staying?_

She knew she probably wasn't. London was not for her and besides, it was really hard for her to feel content in one place for long. After traveling these past few months, she knew that fact even more than before. If she couldn't travel, she wouldn't feel alive. Staying in one place too long was stifling.

Finally she had escaped to the bath. Now she could think in peace!

Among the bubbles and hot water, her mind went back to earlier that day. While un-boarding the ship, she had remembered something. It was something small – seemingly unimportant- but for some reason it really bothered her.

She remembered… when she was first leaving for her trip at the same port, she had seen a brilliant blue butterfly and the name "Absolem" had appeared, unbidden, in her mind. There was no one with that name she could bring to mind... but it seemed very familiar. She scored her mind, trying to bring the image of that "Absolem" to her mind. Her head hurt from thinking about it so much… that incorrigible thought! Wasn't her memory supposed to be good…? At that, she heard a laugh echo in her mind; a laugh that wasn't in her own voice.

While her mother and sister had followed her around, asking those endless questions, she had even wandered into her father's old study searching for an insect guide. She had to try and find the species. After all… she had never seen that type of butterfly before then… had she?

That specific species she had seen wasn't in any of the books. Sure, there were plenty of blue butterflies, but none of them looked like the one she had remembered seeing; a Monarch butterfly design, but completely blue instead of orange, black, and white. Though… it had been almost six months since she had seen it. How accurate could her memory be? Admittedly, she wasn't sure how trust-worthy it was anymore. There were too many strangely familiar, yet elusive, images and feelings floating around inside her these days. It was quite possible she had dreamed that butterfly experience as well!

Sighing, she slumped further into the bath water. Damn curiosity. Why did the butterfly or mysterious name even matter? Maybe Absolem had been a friend of her father who had collected insects… or maybe she had read it in some book.

In any case, she was done turning her brain inside-out over it for now. She decided to turn her attention back to the lovely dreams that she frequently had… ah… green eyes were much nicer to think about and she really needed to get into a good mood before her mother took her shopping for new clothes. Apparently her mother didn't think the Chinese outfits she had brought back from her trip were good enough for her to wear around London.

* * *

"Alice, really!" Her mother exclaimed in an exasperated tone. "I've never been so embarrassed! Everybody was staring!" She closed the front door. "I mean, really! Do you believe yourself to be a man?" looked as though she wanted to say more, but seemed to think better of it… yes, it was much easier to focus on the less aggravating issue at hand.

Alice giggled and turned to the hall mirror to admire herself.

She didn't know why, but when she had seen it, she just had to have it.

Turning about, she admired the men's red Wellington top hat she had just bought; abruptly ending the shopping trip with her mother. She smiled. A reason to like the hat even more.

"_Though… it would've been better if it was thoroughly green, just like…."_ she thought to herself, then paused. It seemed… was she considering the man in her recent dreams to be real? _"Maybe I __**will**__ end up like Aunt Imogene." _She sighed. "I think I am going mad," she mumbled to herself out loud.

"I'm happy you realize what I'm trying to tell you!" Her mother commented dryly. "Now take that dreadful thing off at once! We have more important issues to talk about!" Her eyes flashed… it would take all her willpower to wait until she and her daughter were in the den to speak more privately.

"Hmmm?" Alice replied distractedly. "Oh no! I wasn't referring to the hat, Mother. It's just that… I think green may be my favorite color now!"

And she walked out the front door, leaving a very frustrated and angry-looking mother behind her. She had a new, greener-looking, wardrobe to buy!

* * *

Walking into a shop, she giggled to herself, remembering the recent outing she had with her mother. While walking through a hat shop, the Wellington she was now wearing had practically called out her name. It was a deep reddish-black color with a dark green band. It had a silky look and it glistened in the sunlight that poured through the shop window. There was no way that she could have kept herself from picking it up and placing it on her head. It didn't matter how it looked on her… it just felt right_. _Not _complete,_ but _right_. Her mother had noticed and managed to sweep it off her head before the shop owner strolled up.

"Ah, interested in the hat?" He said with a smile. "Perhaps a gift for someone special…?"

_Someone special? _She grinned, imaging a pair of green eyes. A thought appeared in her head, promising her to turn this boring trip into an entertaining one. So, she had pretended the man in her dreams was real… completely ruffling her mother in the process.

Of course, she couldn't really remember much about her dream man - dreams were fairly hard to get a firm grasp on - and so she had just relayed the parts she had made up about him while she had been day-dreaming earlier.

"Oh yes! My… _friend_… just adores hats!" She replied happily, glancing at her mother when emphasizing "friend". She could clearly see what her mother was assuming by the look on her face. Her daughter was secretly seeing someone; someone definitely improper enough to be kept a secret! Alice had almost giggled, but she managed to keep a more serious attitude so it would be more believable.

"His eyes are a lovely shade of green and I think this red would contrast them nicely." She turned the hat about, admiring it.

"Ah! It sounds like he is special to you!" The old shop-keepers eyes twinkled knowingly. "Tell me more!"

"Well…" She continued, thinking about how she'd want her perfect suitor to be, "he's very passionate, but equally caring. Saying he's loyal would be an understatement. He's honorable, unselfish, intelligent, and never hides his emotions. I can do whatever I want and he doesn't mind." Smiling dreamily, she concluded, "He's wonderfully mad.…"

"Oh ho! Young people in love! So joyful!" The man chuckled. Alice glanced at her mother and saw that she didn't share his sentiments. In fact, she was silently fuming.

The hat was bought before her mother could protest and Alice placed it on her head as they walked out the door; mortifying her mother even further. didn't hesitate to hail their carriage, hoping to avoid further humiliation, and they had spent the ride home in silence… though Alice couldn't hide a small grin.

Alice smiled again as she finished recalling the incident. It's not like her mother had anything to really be angry about -besides the way she was wearing a man's hat. After all, it's not as though the man that she had described was _real!_

Her smile faltered as her heart throbbed.

"_No, no!"_ She shook her head. "_Don't get too caught up in a fantasy, Alice! It'll be fun while you're old and senile… but it's not fun anymore when your heart hurts from it!" _She went back to shopping for her new green dresses.

* * *

"_But days went by - he found her not;_

_And years rolled on - she never came;_

_Though ever round the fatal spot_

_A mocking whisper of her name_

_In hollow whispers seemed to roll_

_Through the dark chambers of his soul."_

~Lewis Carroll (The Dream of Fame)

Since the White Queen's reign, the checkerboard battlefield had taken on a less gloomy atmosphere. Perhaps it was because the White Queen preferred to avoid conflicts and war. That's not to say that the sky overhead was suddenly cloudless and sunny… and there were definitely not any flowers or cute animals anywhere. The stone stairway was still broken as well, but even so, it _was_ less gloomy.

Yes, the sky was a light shade of grey and slightly dirty-looking clouds covered the sun. Plants were beginning to grow around the checkerboard. Even though many were thistles, it was still nice to see some green there. The Jabberwock's body had long since been cleared away to create some of Mirana's many potions.

Tarrant sat on the old dilapidated stairway where Alice had fought her epic battle with the Jabberwock.

It's not that he liked the place… but it did have Alice memories there. Important Alice memories. Her name haunted him everywhere on this battlefield… in fact, he got dizzy whenever he first entered it. He sat there as his mind rambled on; thinking of that conflicting day. How could a day be so happy, yet so miserable at the same time? That day, the White Queen had finally gotten her throne returned to her… but on that same day, Alice had left him. That day, he had kissed Alice… but on that same day, _Alice had left him! _

_**She had left him!**_

His sigh was a half-groan as he closed his yellow eyes and buried his face into his hands. He sat there in his memories.

Knowing he'd regret it if he hadn't, he had asked her to stay; even though he was afraid of the rejection, he knew he had to at least **try. **She had raised his hope, and then dashed it away all in the same sentence. All he could do was whisper "Fairfarren" and, with that impulsive split-second decision, had kissed her quickly on the lips. He saw the surprise in her eyes before she had faded away….

Surprise that caused him to be haunted by doubt ever since. Yet, he couldn't regret what he had done.

He had stayed frozen in that spot… staring at the place where Alice had been. For a few minutes, it seemed like everyone was afraid to talk to him. Nobody moved. Finally, as the White Queen put on a brave smile and took a step towards him, he had spun around with a seemingly happy expression. "Well, I think this occasion calls for a tea party!" Instead of breaking the awkward silence as he had thought it would have, his words and demeanor seemed to have made it worse. He never realized that throughout his words and actions for the next week, his eyes had given him away. Mally waited until his red eyes turned to a safer shade of yellow before letting him know what everybody else could clearly see.

Though… Yellow hadn't been safe enough and he had raged for hours. Soon enough, however, he was his normal self again. He wasn't completely the same as he had been before, but green eyes were enough to put everyone back at ease.

On the checkerboard field, Tarrant slowly uncovered his eyes and stood up. Of course, if -no, _**when**_ - she came back, Alice would probably not show up here. He hurried away. His queen had summoned him back to the castle. Apparently only _his_ hats were good enough for her. It made him happy, though lately he had been dreading public appearances.

Since the Frabjous Day, there had been too many giggling girls around him. Well… if they suggestively asked him to Futterwacken one more time, maybe his dark madness would finally scare them away! With the way he had been on edge lately, he was happy to realize it wouldn't take much to make him lose it in front of those harlots. Comforted by the thought, he made his way to the castle.

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**Next update**: A terrible bout of madness & things that happen when one is too curious.

Again, you don't have to review, but if you like the story, it's a good way to get me to keep updating :D


	4. Chapter 3

Ugh… if you couldn't tell, I've been having writer's block T.T So… the next chapter will probably be kinda late too. I have the basic idea of what's happening next, but, you know, I still need to fill in the rest heh.

I've been hooked on the drama "Personal Taste" too. If you haven't watched a Korean drama yet, you should give it a try~ They build up the romantic tension and release it well!

Dramacrazy or mysoju is where I usually go to watch them.

Okay, now on to this chapter:

* * *

Summary: _Alice is back in her world and has been having dreams about kissing Tarrant… but she can't remember him or Wonderland._

_ She just embarrassed her mom by buying and wearing a man's hat._

_Meanwhile, Tarrant was pondering over Alice at the old battleground._

_

* * *

_

_"I have not seen thy sunny face,_

_Nor heard thy silver laughter;_

_No thought of me shall find a place_

_In thy young life's hereafter—"_

~Lewis Carroll (Through the Looking Glass)

Tarrant was in his work shop.

He was standing in front of a very large portrait on the wall with a hat in hand.

The portrait had been a gift from the White Queen. It was of Alice.

He wasn't sure when or how it had been done…. Maybe by some magic, maybe from memory, or maybe the artist was just really fast and Alice never had a chance to object before it had been finished, (surely she wouldn't have agreed to something like this, would she? Had there even been any time for it?).

Tarrant didn't really care. He was just grateful he had it in his possession. This would keep him from panicking over forgetting what she looks like. With this, he could be kept from fully knowing she had left.

She had said "Be back before you know it," but he knew Alice well enough to know that she was _always late_! He would need something for that space between knowing it and her lateness.

Maybe that time was now… He shook his head before his eyes turned too yellow. Best not to think about_ that._

Better to create Alice-inspired hats… yes… light blue, blue hats… hats for Alice, Alice hats! He giggled, but not before sticking his thumb with another needle to keep his Bad Thoughts at bay.

He turned away from the portrait and started humming a song; an Underlandian folk song about a girl. He sang in his head, changing the words a bit so that he could sing more accurately about Alice. Today he would not let himself think the Bad Thoughts. Of course she would be back! She surely hadn't forgotten him. Kisses were not easily forgotten… at least, not in his experience! He giggled and touched his lips, remembering. True, it had been a quick kiss, but quick did not equal forgettable.

Mind wandering like usual, he suddenly tensed. Alice didn't have a suitor did she? She was at that age…. He frowned, eyes fading from the default green. Maybe she had already been kissed by someone else… someone who had kissed much longer than "quickly". His eyes swirled, seemingly unable to attach to a certain color.

"_Alice!"_

His hands gripped the hat, shakily. She most certainly would _not_ be back if she had a fiancé! His heart stopped. Could she have had a suitor when she was here last? Is that why she had gone back? _She already had someone else and_ _**he had kissed her**_? That would make him… make him… Alice would never forgive him again for stealing something that belonged to the man that she really loved! Anyone would despise someone for doing that! "Despicable, disgraceful, detestable,** disgusting** –"

"Hatter…?" He ignored the cautious, but clear, voice that suddenly invaded the room.

"-**dirty, depraved, dishonorable, DAMNABLE-"**

He proceeded in that manner for some time - losing all coherence in a tirade of furious Outlandish - and when he finally came-to, he found himself staring at Alice's portrait on the wall. As his eyes slowly went back to the dull green they had been wearing lately, he made himself turn around; though fearful of what he would find.

His workshop had been thoroughly destroyed.

Chairs were smashed, tables overturned, hats and fabrics shredded. Pins and needles buried the floor dangerously. Scissors were protruding from the wall. The sight of a broken window made him gasp and he ran for the door. He didn't want to see this. He didn't want to see what he had done! Only Alice's portrait had remained unharmed through his madness. If she had actually been there, he never would've gone this far!

The door was locked. He almost panicked, but as soon as he let go of the handle, it slowly opened from the other side. The White Queen peered into the room and he could hear her sigh with relief when she saw his eyes. "See? I told you he was fine~!" A silky voice purred. "Hatta…?" Mally squeaked.

Tarrant was mortified. It was hard to face his queen. "I…I'm so sorry!" He managed to lisp. Closing his eyes, he bowed. Oh how he wished he could rush from the room! They had thought him to be so dangerous that they had locked him up in his workshop; he must have been beyond calling back from _that _episode of madness! Things have certainly gotten bad….

"Come with me Tarrant Hightopp," Mirana commanded with a stern smile.

* * *

"_A Darling's kiss:  
Dearest of all the signs that fleet  
From lips that lovingly repeat  
Again, again, the message sweet!  
Full to the brim with girlish glee,  
A child, a very child is she,  
Whose dream of heaven is still to be  
At Home: for Home is Bliss."_

~Lewis Carroll

It had happened when she was in her father's study.

She had been catching up on some work for her business, though her heart wasn't really in it anymore. Had her father realized what going to China would entail? Certainly not. Everybody seemed obsessed with opium these days… so much so that it had caused a war. At first, she didn't want to admit the guilt she was feeling, but eventually she realized her father would have agreed with her had he known what was now happening. Her father would probably be in the same position if he was still here.

She wanted out.

Of course, she would get out of the damn thing, but she wasn't quite sure how to go about it, or what she would do afterwards. Her mother would certainly try to marry her off as soon as possible if she quit the business… she seemed to be in denial that Alice was almost past marrying age. She sighed and rubbed her eyes. The first step had been getting back to London. Now, she just had to come up with a plan of what to do after she quit.

For now, she would work as she thought up a plan to leave this retched thing behind, as well as get away from her mother's plans. Maybe she would travel to America. Trying to sneak in and fight in the war was out of the question… sure she had slain the Jabberwock, but human beings? Never!

Then she had come across something interesting.

Searching for some reference from her father's bookshelf, she found an old journal. Her heart started racing as she picked it up… she almost laughed when she opened it to find her father's handwriting. And laugh she did when she saw it was an actual journal and not just some business notes.

He had been writing about _her_.

She took it to her bedroom and sat down on her bed to leaf through the pages. Smiling and laughing every now and then… sighing and feeling herself tear up at other entries… something caught her eye.

"_Alice has been talking about her Wonderland again. Such great detail… I'm fairly uncertain that a child her age could have such dreams! Alice is intelligent for her age and has a great imagination, but I doubt that she could've made up those riddles, puns, and rhymes on her own."_

She read on as he described the things she had told him… memories appeared slowly in her mind and she snapped the book shut. Closing her eyes, she let the memories flow. Cat, twins, Red Queen, White Queen, White Rabbit, Hare… a strange tea party… _green eyes_…? They didn't feel like the shadowy, un-detailed memories of a normal dream… more like the memories of her childhood, such as the time she made Hamish scream like a girl when she had forced that to toad kiss him.

Poor toad.

"_Hmmm… maybe I was mad even then. Of course, all the best people are, but wouldn't it be grand if I wasn't? At least… for this?"_ The green eyes wouldn't leave her mind again. This time they felt more real - a memory instead of a dream - and refused to leave her alone. She touched her lips and walked up to her full-length mirror.

She blushed as a certain thought took hold of her mind. Then, she rolled her eyes and her face took on a stubborn expression - though the flush remained.

Romance was something she had never really liked to concern herself with, but curiosity was another matter… and it's not as though there was anybody around to _see _her! She slowly leaned towards the mirror to kiss her reflection.

Where the mirror's surface should've been, her lips found nothing but air! The surprise caused her to fall forward. Arms waving, she tripped over the bottom of the mirror and disappeared into the space between the mirror's large frame.

All that remained of Alice in the room was the echo of a muffled scream.

* * *

Next up: _What happened to the mirror? _

While you're waiting for my next chapter, go read manniness's Tarrant x Alice fic! She's just started the 3rd book! I'm so excited! If you're interested, I have the link to her stories on my profile page :D Don't miss it!


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